Are You Kidding Me?

It's rare that I post twice a day, but this day warrants just such a response.

I just watched the end of the wretched edition of Monday Night Football and wanted to throw a flag at the decisions about running plays. I don't comprehend what's going through the coaching staff's minds at times. My hands curled into outstretched claws of disbelief. My voice filled the room with, "Are you kidding me?" I had to get up and walk out as the now 4-7 Baltimore Ravens celebrated their win over the now 2-9 Cleveland Browns. What a night.

In a quick NBA aside, Kobe Bryant was well-spoken given the oath he used as he talked about retiring from playing basketball after being with the same team for 20 years. That's loyalty, folks. Respect to the man for his drive and determination to play. I will make a point to watch the Lakers play just to see him in action on the court "one more time" before he walks away the last time.

Lady Grid out.

Pro Football Recap - November 29, 2015

Here's the skinny on my professional football predictions. Nope, still not headed for Vegas.

1. Philadelphia at Detroit (Thanksgiving Game)
2. Carolina at Dallas  (Thanksgiving Game)
3. Chicago at Green Bay (Thanksgiving Game)
4. Minnesota at Atlanta - Teddy Bridgewater and Adrian Peterson made it an exciting game!
5. Buffalo at Kansas City- Time ran out for the Bills who like the Chiefs are now 5-5.
6. St. Louis at Cincinnati- What a blowout!
7. Oakland at Tennessee- That interception with seconds remaining killed Mariota's come-from-behind drive.
8. Tampa Bay at Indianapolis- Despite a heroic effort by Jameis Winston, the "old man" Matt Hasselbeck really played well and led the team to victory.
9. Miami at NY Jets- Chris Ivory!
10. New Orleans at Houston- You know they're happy to have a winning record now.
11. NY Giants at Washington- It was too little too late even with OBJ's second greatest catch (so far)!
12. San Diego at Jacksonville - It was almost the other way with the Jags showing real heart.
13. Arizona at San Francisco- The league needs to look at some of those calls and clarify which down is correct, etc. It was an officiating debacle.
14. Pittsburgh at Seattle- Big Ben had a concussion. These are nothing to play around with.
15. New England at Denver - I hope the Gronk's injury isn't too serious. I may not be a Pats fan, but there's something mischevous about that young man that tells me I'd have to keep an eye on him in the classroom.
16. Baltimore at Cleveland (Monday Night Football Game)

Lady Grid out.

College Recap/Pro Forecast - November 29, 2015

NCAA Football

1. Clemson at South Carolina – Poor Gamecocks (CORRECT!)
2. Virginia Tech at Virginia – Hokies win one more for Coach Beamer and become bowl eligible. (CORRECT!)
3. Ohio State at Michigan- I really would like to see Big Blue take the Buckeyes down. (WRONG - boo)
4. UCLA at USC- Always wanted a bear skin rug. Get me one, Trojans. (CORRECT!)
5. Penn State at Michigan State-Go Sparty! (CORRECT!)
6. BYU at Utah State- Cougars will crush these Aggies. (CORRECT!)
7. Alabama at Auburn-Auburn will be up and raring to go; however, I think the Tide rolls past in the end. I’d love to be wrong about this one, so I rated it as my ten-point game on my last week of College Pick ‘Em. (CORRECT!)
8. Ole Miss at Mississippi State- The cowbells will be deafening tonight if you tune in to watch this game. (WRONG - boo)
9. Florida State at Florida- The Swamp awaits the Seminoles. (WRONG - boo)
10. Texas A&M at LSU – I want my Aggies to win; however, this was alledgedly Coach Miles’ last game, and the Tigers have something to “geaux for.” (CORRECT!)
11. Notre Dame at Stanford – Neither team is a favorite by any stretch of the imagination, but I always want the Fighting Irish to lose. It’s been that way for most of my life. Get over it. (CORRECT!)
12. Oklahoma at Oklahoma State – Bedlam! Let’s go, Pokes! (WRONG - boo)

NFL

1. Philadelphia at Detroit
2. Carolina at Dallas
3. Chicago at Green Bay
4. Minnesota at Atlanta
5. Buffalo at Kansas City
6. St. Louis at Cincinnati
7. Oakland at Tennessee
8. Tampa Bay at Indianapolis
9. Miami at NY Jets
10. New Orleans at Houston
11. NY Giants at Washington
12. San Diego at Jacksonville
13. Arizona at San Francisco
14. Pittsburgh at Seattle
15. New England at Denver
16. Baltimore at Cleveland

Lady Grid out.

The Beginning of the End

Why the strange title? The regular season of NCAA football ends today for the schools who didn't play on Thursday and Friday. More mania about who should be number one ensues. There will still be some collegiate football played next week with conference championships and the Army-Navy game on December 12.

1. Clemson at South Carolina – Poor Gamecocks
2. Virginia Tech at Virginia – Hokies win one more for Coach Beamer and become bowl eligible.
3. Ohio State at Michigan- I really would like to see Big Blue take the Buckeyes down.
4. UCLA at USC- Always wanted a bear skin rug. Get me one, Trojans.
5. Penn State at Michigan State-Go Sparty!
6. BYU at Utah State- Cougars will crush these Aggies.
7. Alabama at Auburn-Auburn will be up and raring to go; however, I think the Tide rolls past in the end. I’d love to be wrong about this one, so I rated it as my ten-point game on my last week of College Pick ‘Em.
8. Ole Miss at Mississippi State- The cowbells will be deafening tonight if you tune in to watch this game.
9. Florida State at Florida- The Swamp awaits the Seminoles.
10. Texas A&M at LSU – I want my Aggies to win; however, this is Coach Miles’ last game, and the Tigers have something to “geaux for.”
11. Notre Dame at Stanford – Neither team is a favorite by any stretch of the imagination, but I always want the Fighting Irish to lose. It’s been that way for most of my life. Get over it.
12. Oklahoma at Oklahoma State – Bedlam! Let’s go, Pokes!

Lady Grid out.

Good Gracious Sakes!

I think I managed to pick only six out of twelve games correctly yesterday. What a disastrous outing! It's better than last week. Want to see how bad it was? Take a gander. of what I put together for Pigskin Pick 'Em's week eleven.

1. Thursday Night Football—Tennessee Titans vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
2. Indianapolis Colts vs. Atlanta Falcons
3. Denver Broncos vs. Chicago Bears
4. Dallas Cowboys vs. Miami Dolphins
5. Oakland Raiders vs. Detroit Lions
6. St. Louis Rams vs. Baltimore Ravens
7. New York Jets vs. Houston Texans
8. Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Philadelphia Eagles
9. Washington Redskins vs. Carolina Panthers
10. Kansas City Chiefs vs. San Diego Chargers
11. Green Bay Packers vs. Minnesota Vikings
12. San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks
13. Cincinnati Bengals vs. Arizona Cardinals
14. Buffalo Bills vs. New England Patriots - Monday Night Football prediction

I don't think Colin Kaepernick will be a 49er much longer once the season ends. Mr. Jones, you need to snap this young man up and groom him under Tony Romo's tutelage.

Peyton, please heal as completely as possible during this bout of injury. I want you to be healthy even if you don't win another Super Bowl.

The lone NCAA Football observation—Coach Urban Meyer handled the comments of his star player with grace and aplomb. It's probably better that the young man Ezekiel Elliott deserves after his well-publicized criticism of the boss. I wish him well.

Well, just one more. LSU head honchos would be madmen to fire Les Miles. He knows how to win games, but sometimes his players meet their match on the football field. This does happen, you realize. Sigh.

Just a thought: can anyone beat the Golden State Warriors and Stephen Curry? Not any time soon.

Lady Grid out.

What Can I Say?

And then there were two. We now have one AFC and one NFC team who are undefeated. Just two left. Who will fall next? I am disheartened that the Bengals played beneath their abilities, but I know J.J. Watt is happy about the win.

Thursday's game will feature Tennessee at Jacksonville. I just don't have any more words about this NFL season. I'll pick the Jaguars to win this game after their victory on Sunday. It's time for a new cat in town.

Lady Grid out.

Quite a Weekend!

How shall I say this? It's been a weekend of upsets for my picks. The pros really ate my lunch this week. I'm glad I'm not on Draft Kings or any other such ilk.

1. All three grade levels of my Middle School Matchup for baseball are now out. Boo!
2. My Plano East Panthers went to the playoffs but lost.
3. Mama's Lincoln Tigers didn't make the playoffs.
4. Daddy's Manual Arts Toilers were eliminated from the playoffs.
5. Hubby's Memorial High Mustangs are moving on and will face Harlingen on Friday evening. Go Mustangs! This is one positive note.
6. My Texas A&M Aggies won their game against Western Carolina but will face Vandy then LSU. Yowzah.
7. I never thought the Detroit Lions would win again at Lambeau Field. They did after 24 years of waiting, wanting, and wishing.
8. I picked the Cowboys to beat the Buccaneers. They lost because Dez Bryant "lost focus." Grrr!
9. "Smiley" Jay Cutler and the Bears beat the favored St. Louis Rams. Sigh.
10. Miami edged Philadelphia after Sam Bradford was injured (again) in the game. That guy catches absolutely no breaks.
11. The Ravens were supposed to beat the Vikings. My boy Teddy Bridgewater had other plans.
12. The Washington Redskins blew the New Orleans Saints out of the water with a 47-14 whooping.
13. Would I ever think to see the General benched? ARGH! Peyton Manning was benched in that wretched game against the Kansas City Chiefs. I think Coach Kubiak's system is all wrong for Peyton. 
14. New England was leading New York early in the fourth quarter. Will Belichick beat Coughlin in their chess match?
15. The Arizona and Seatlle game will be a scream because you won't be able to hear over all of that racket in their stadium. Yergh. I think the Seahawks will win, but I want the Cardinals to prevail.
16. I am picking the Cincinnati Bengals to also be 9-0 after their game against  the Houston Texans. You just never know.

Lady Grid out.

Solid Gridiron

Friday Night Lights Recap - November 6, 2015

1. The Frisco Centennial Titans lost to The Colony 24-14.
2. Plano East Panthers lost to the Allen Eagles.
3. The undefeated McAllen Memorial Mustangs traveled to play the Mission Eagles and beat them soundly, 67-14. 
4. We waited until Saturday afternoon for the Lincoln High Tigers to fight a gridiron battle against the Madison Trojans. We should have waited longer. Lincoln lost 31-12. Sigh.
5. The Manual Arts Toilers (California) made it to .500 with a 65-0 blowout of Locke.

College Gridiron Predictions - November 7, 2015

I've written my choices in bold writing. As you can see, I did a better job at picking the earlier games than the later games yesterday. Sheesh!

1. Duke at UNC
2. Kentucky at Georgia
3. Vanderbilt at Florida
4. Stanford at Colorado
5. Notre Dame at Pittsburgh
6. Arizona State at Washington State
7. Florida State at Clemson
8. Iowa at Indiana
9. Marshall at Middle Tennessee
10. New Mexico State at Texas State
11. Navy at Memphis
12. Utah at Washington
13. Auburn at Texas A&M
14. TCU at Oklahoma State
15. LSU at Alabama

My "Bold" NFL Predictions - November 8, 2015

1. Cleveland at Cincinnati
2. Green Bay at Carolina - Don't tell my son I picked against his team this week.
3. Washington at New England
4. Tennessee at New Orleans - I want the Saints to win for the Eliminator Challenge on ESPN.
5. Miami at Buffalo
6. St. Louis at Minnesota
7. Jacksonville at NY Jets
8. Oakland at Pittsburgh
9. NY Giants at Tampa Bay
10. Atlanta at San Francisco
11. Denver at Indianapolis
12. Philadelphia at Dallas
13. Chicago at San Diego - Monday Night Football

Lady Grid out.

Mavs Winless at Home Again

The Mavericks lost tonight's game to the Charlotte Hornets in Dallas. They're now 0-2 at home. Maybe the AAC isn't the best place for them? Just kidding.

The Bengals beat up on the Browns with a score of 31-10. They're the first team to reach 8-0 for this season. How long does it last? We'll see, won't we?

Friday Night Lights:

1. The Frisco Centennial Titans play a district game against The Colony Cougars on Friday night. Go, Titans!
2. My Plano East Panthers go up Highway 5 to play the Allen Eagles tomorrow night. Beat 'em, Panthers! East! East! East!
3. The undefeated McAllen Memorial Mustangs travel to play the Mission Eagles. 
4. We wait until Saturday afternoon for the Lincoln High Tigers to fight a gridiron battle against the Madison Trojans.
5. The Manual Arts Toilers (California) hope to make it to .500 after their game against the Locke Saints tomorrow. Go, Tommy Toiler!

Nothing helps the writing process like a trip down musical memory lane with Depeche Mode's "Enjoy the Silence," Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now," The Smiths' "How Soon is Now?" playing as I pen these thoughts. Don't judge.

Lady Grid out.

Panthers Still Perfect

After allowing the Colts to tie the game late in the fourth quarter, it didn't look good for Carolina to continue their streak of wins, but Graham Gano saved their bacon with his OT field goal.  I'm glad that Keyshawn, Cris, and the rest of the MNF crew were correct about picking Carolina.

The team who plays Andrew Luck next had better watch out. They're coming back. Oops, it's the Broncos at the Lucas Oil Stadium. Maybe the game after the Broncos when they visit Atlanta. The jury is still out deliberating this one.

Colin Kaepernick will be benched the next time the San Francisco 49ers take the field to play

NBA
The Spurs beat the Knicks; Tim Duncan earned his 954th win with the Spurs. This is the record for most wins with one team. Wow.

LeBron James hit the 25,000 point mark in their win over the 76ers; this show resilience.

James Harden beat his old team to earn the Rockets' first win of the young season.

Golden State walloped poor Memphis 119-69. Time for some first aid, Grizzlies. That one'll leave a mark.

NHL
The Dallas Stars were outscored 4-1 in their game up north against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Lady Grid out.

Mostly in the Green (Correct Picks, not Money)

NFL Wrap-Up - November 1, 2015
Most teams have reached the halfway mark of their seasons. Most of my predictions were spot-on, but I won't be heading to Las Vegas or joining Fan Duel and any other sites of their ilk.

1. Miami at New England – Thursday Night Football
2. Detroit at Kansas City
3. Tampa Bay at Atlanta
4. Arizona at Cleveland
5. San Francisco at St. Louis
6. New York Giants at New Orleans
7. Minnesota at Chicago
8. San Diego at Baltimore
9. Cincinnati at Pittsburgh
10. Tennessee at Houston
11. New York Jets at Oakland
12. Seattle at Dallas
13. Green Bay at Denver - I normally don't pick against my General, but I wasn't sure. I am sorry I didn't change my prediction.
14. Indianapolis at Carolina – Monday Night Football

Congratulations to the Kansas City Royals who won the World Series last night. Next year, Mets. Next year.

Lady Grid out.

Happy November!

College Wrap-Up from October 31, 2015

1. Illinois vs. Penn State
2. Ole Miss vs. Auburn
3. Syracuse vs. Florida State
4. South Carolina vs. Texas A&M University
5. Oklahoma State vs. Texas Tech
6. University of Southern California vs. California
7. Georgia vs. Florida
8. Maryland vs. Iowa
9. Louisiana Monroe vs. Louisiana Lafayette - Monroe scored all their points in the first half. It wasn't enough.
10. Tulsa vs. SMU - I didn't expect the Mustangs to come up short.
11. San Diego State vs. Colorado State
12. Tennessee vs. Kentucky
13. Texas at Iowa State - This one was a rather unpleasant surprise.
14. Notre Dame vs. Temple
15. Stanford vs. Washington State

NFL, Baby!

1. Miami at New England - Thursday Night Football game
2. Detroit at Kansas City
3. Tampa Bay at Atlanta
4. Arizona at Cleveland
5. San Francisco at St. Louis
6. New York Giants at New Orleans
7. Minnesota at Chicago
8. San Diego at Baltimore
9. Cincinnati at Pittsburgh
10. Tennessee at Houston
11. New York Jets at Oakland
12. Seattle at Dallas
13. Green Bay at Denver
14. Indianapolis at Carolina – Monday Night Football

On an MLB note, the Royals seem bent on winning unless the Mets do something in game five tonight at 7:00 P.M. CST. Come on, Metropolitans!

Lady Grid out.